Can my environmental conditions impact my adhesive?

In today's blog we're going to talk about how your environmental conditions impact adhesive performance and what you can do about it.

Humidity and temperature are two things that are constantly discussed in the lash world. When humidity is mentioned in relation to lash adhesive it is referred to as Relative Humidity (RH). RH is the amount of water vapour present in the air. This is important for a lash artist to know because humidity/moisture is the catalyst for curing lash adhesive.  

All lash adhesives have an optimal range of environmental conditions in which they work perfectly. Most of the time, and as a rule of thumb, it's at a temperature of between 18°c – 24°c and a RH of between 40% - 60%.

If the conditions stray from those ranges, even by 1°c, your adhesive will act, look and work differently (and poorly).

Which is why checking and controlling the humidity in your lash room is really important!

Your environmental conditions can impact adhesive performance, so if your adhesive isn't working as it should, ask yourself the below questions: 

• Has your heating been on all day?
• Is your room getting warmer as the day goes on?
• Have you left your glue out overnight?
• Are you leaving the glue on the jade stone or well too long?

Too much moisture 

The slightest amount of moisture near your lash adhesive can cause the adhesive to not work as it should. If the humidity is too high (too much moisture >80%) 'shock polymerization' takes place.

This provokes a shrinking process of the adhesive layer, which leads to less bond strength or in other words; the lash extension will not bond to the natural lash. 

If the lash extensions are not bonding properly to the natural lash this could be a sign that the humidity in your lash room is too high. 

How to lower humidity

Making sure your humidity is at the optimum level for your adhesive is a must. Here are a few ways you can lower humidity in your lash room:

• Remove anything from your lash room that holds moisture. For example: Plants. They are beautiful and look lovely in any lash room, but they do release their fair share of moisture.
• Open up a window. Sometimes just opening your window will help lower your humidity levels, but be careful that by doing so, it doesn't increase the temperature of your lash room.
• Air conditioning. Now we know AC units can be costly, but so can having to re-do clients lashes due to poor retention. So, if humidity is a real issue in your lash room, you may want to think about investing in an air conditioning unit.
• Purchase a dehumidifier. These work by removing moisture from the air as it passes through the system. When that air then reaches you, it’s dry and cool. 

Temperature 

Temperature is also really important when it comes to working with lash adhesive. Below is a video that shows the difference in adhesive performance. The video shows 2 of our adhesives from the SAME BATCH. One has been kept at 12°c and the other at room temperature (20°c). The simple change in temperature by just 8°c has a huge affect on how it behaves.

To tackle this make sure your adhesive is stored at room temperature OR make sure you bring the adhesive up to room temperature BEFORE you start using it.

How to control temperature 

To ensure the temperature remains the same in your lash room/salon you need to check the temperature regularly and ensure your lash room is well ventilated. One way to do this is by using a hygrometer, however, be aware that cheap Hygrometers can give inconsistent readings so it's worth investing in a reliable one.

Picking an adhesive 

Its worth considering your environmental conditions when it comes to selecting a lash adhesive. Remember a warmer room with higher humidity will mean that your glue will cure more quickly, whereas a colder environment with low humidity can mean the glue can take longer to cure and slow you down.

It may be worth considering using a Hygrometer to gauge both the temperature and humidity - there is no such thing as a glue that will 'cover everything'.

We hope this blog post has helped those of you who may be struggling with humidity at the moment! As always if you have any questions, please get in touch with us on Instagram and we will be happy to help - @LashBase_UK

New for 2023:

If you are looking for an adhesive that works between 15C to 35C (19-24C is optimal) or 15% to 85% (40%-70% is optimal) humidity - then check out our new adhesive range of eyelash extension glue! Advance Adhesives.